A Multi-Generational Legacy of Master Builders

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The Chauvin family came to Louisiana in 1799 from Calais, France. Jacques Chauvin had 5 children, of which 3 were sons. Those 3 sons started an enterprise and Legacy in the Union, La area that continues today. One of the sons, Capt Jacques Chauvin II, piloted steamboats between New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Biloxi, and ferried across the river in the mid 1800's. The other brother, Louis I (Spencer's g- g-g-grandfather) was a sugar maker and Master Mason (Builder) and built the Pape Vert (pronounced pop vair). The PapeVert was the center of the enterprise. The 1st floor housed gambling rooms and the 2nd, a dance floor with bandstand so that when the ships would stop, the passengers could enjoy themselves ashore along the way. In front of the Papevert was a cigar factory that the other brother Eugene owned. Louis I had several children, but 2 sons teamed up and went into business together, the Chauvin Brothers. Louis II (Spencer's g-g-grandfather) & Pierre Chauvin. Together, they formed a contracting company that endeavored in many business enterprises. They were master builders, engineers, architects, contractors, master brick masons, sugar chemists, sugar makers, gunsmiths, cobblers, among many other talents. They were true "renaissance" men. They repaired and built numerous sugar houses, churches, houses, plantation homes, etc.  Many of those structures still stand today and Spencer has many of the tools and tool boxes utilized at the time and rebuilt the blacksmith shop behind his house where many of those tasks took place.  Louis II's son, Frank Chauvin I was also a master mason and sugar engineer but decided to to serve the public as Chief Deputy, Asst. Clerk of Court, and Parish Treasurer. Stories have been passed down that while performing those duties, people in the area still consulted with him to figure out difficult building issues and even asked him to design cabinets and furniture because of his abilities.  Frank had 4 children, all whom were talented. Garland, an accomplished artist worked for LA State in the sign department & is responsible for the green interstate signs that are on side the interstates across the country today. Francis became a boat builder, sugar engineer, and carpenter and was responsible for fully restoring the Lambremont House & Bocage & Bagatelle Plantations without the assistance or need of an Architect. Charlie, (Spencer's grandfather), was strickened with constant migraine headaches, and couldn't be exposed to the sun for long and took up a job as a store keep, buying the old Pape Vert back. Owning the store allowed him the benefit of being able to have other clerks take over in the event of a migraine. He too, was able to perform very advanced carpentry tasks like boat building, carriage repair, building construction, artistry/design. Charlie's son, Henry, went on to learn architecture at LSU. He learned hands on from Uncle Pierre's son, Emile Chauvin, Architect while working at "H Construction" in Lutcher, LA designing homes. Henry graduated from LSU in 1966 only 1 of 6 students out of a beginning class of 109. He went on to work at Smith-Hinchman-Grylls, a 1000 man architecture firm in Detroit, MI -  at the time, the largest architecture firm in the world. From there he entered the Army and tested into the Army Engineer Officer Candidate School at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO where he then went to Vietnam serving as a MACV Engineer Advisor to Vietnamese Army Civilian Engineers responsible for the rural province of 44,000 inhabitants for tasks like bridge building, clearing roads of mines, building airport runways, and water treatment duties. He then went on to finish out 29 years in the Corps of Engineers in New Orleans finishing as Company Commander and having graduated from Command & General Staff College, retiring as Lieutenant Colonel. Henry received his license to practice architecture in 1970 and went on to work at Nolan Norman, Nolan Architects where they joint ventured with Curtis & Davis Architects to design the Superdome in NOLA. Henry was the only specification writer at the firm from 1972-1979 while they worked on projects like DH Homes Lakeside Mall, DH Homes Lafe Forrest, (5) additions to Mercy Hospital, Hotel Dieu Hospital renovations, the 1k Man prison at St. Gabriel and hundreds of other commercial and residential projects. Henry was also 1 of only 2 CSI (Construction Specifier's Institute) Specifiers in the State of Louisiana for quite some time that could actually pass the 1st (Gulf States CCS) test in Little Rock, AR. They finally had to make the test easier to take for the other Architects to be able to pass it. During that time he was on the Board of Directors for the CSI, LA for 6 years. Henry raised Spencer & his brother Marc to learn as much as they could from him at a very early age, tasking them with many advanced projects and has spent a lifetime imparting all of his combined knowledge as well as the legacy knowledge he has acquired from his cousins, uncles, and previous mentors & ancestors. Spencer plans to continue the Legacy of Contracting/Engineering/Design for as long as he can. He currently lives in the house of his ancestors, from Louis I on down 8 generations to his daughters, Chloe & Avery. He is currently still restoring the ancient home along with his wife, Chantel and hopes to one day bring the home to its former glory.